Karapatan-Southern Tagalog is asking the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) Mimaropa and the Regional Trial Court Branch 81 for an explanation to the allegations that Maria Teresa Dioquino is being held in solitary confinement and harassed by military intelligence officials.
“The pattern of the police’s use of search warrants, planting evidence and effecting the arbitrary arrests and detention of individuals like Pastor Dan Balucio is a glaring form of weaponization of the judiciary against activists and dissenters.”
“Simply put, the AFP and Philippine National Police (PNP) had no solid, intelligent basis before launching massive operations in a rural sitio in Nasugbu, Batangas in April 2020.”
On the day KMP leader Joseph Canlas was buried, two elderly, ailing peasant activists were arrested.
The prosecutor noted that the statements of the witnesses, co-witnesses and the circumstances leading to the identification of Jenelyn Nagrampa-Caballero and Pastor Dan San Andres “are tainted with doubt and irregularity.”
Apart from the red-tagging of Joseph Canlas on social media, threats were felt by members of his family in their own homes.
By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL MANILA – Lies! These were the sentiments of human rights workers who were recently issued with arrest warrants based solely on shady testimonies. Karapatan’s national chairperson Elisa Lubi and Karapatan-Southern Mindanao Region secretary general Jayvee “Jay” Apiag were slapped with attempted murder charges by Corporal Elvin Jay Claud on June…
“Not only is it an underhanded threat against Judge Quisumbing-Ignacio, it also seeks to undermine the independence of all judges and the courts handling similar cases.”
Journalist Lady Ann Salem thanked Judge Monique Quisumbing-Ignacio for “seeing the truth behind the fabricated charges” and all those who supported the campaign for her release.
Colleagues of Bayan’s Lutgardo “Boyette” Jurcales Jr. and Dutch lay missionary Otto De Vries said the two have dedicated their lives serving the marginalized and the poor. One has been charged with fabricated charges, while the other is being kicked out of the country.
Human rights watchdog Karapatan noted that the military threatened to file a criminal case against Alexa Pacalda if they did not sign an affidavit. Her father Arnulfo was coerced into signing and convinced his daughter to do so as well, “fearful of what the military could do to [her].”